Commission slashes block grant funding

Tuesday

The Amarillo City Commission on Tuesday dealt funds from a shrinking pot of federal money for community services.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development slashed the city's 2012-13 Community Development Block Grant funding by 12 percent, to $1.45 million.

The commission acted Tuesday on a list of recommendations the Community Development Advisory Committee whittled from $3.4 million in requests.

Federal restrictions limit the amount of block grant money that can go to public service projects to 15 percent of the $1.45 million, Community Development Director James Allen said.

So the city had just $217,730 to divide among nonprofits that provide adult day care, hunger abatement, youth after-school activities, transportation for the homeless and other assistance.

The largest allocation in that category - $100,000 - will go to a Panhandle Regional Planning Commission program that helps low-income parents pay for child care from a licensed provider, committee Chairman Chuck Parr said.

Those block grant dollars will be matched almost 2 to 1 from other funding sources, Parr said. The program also received $100,000 in 2011-12, according to city information.

The plan approved Tuesday directs almost $152,000 into neighborhood improvement projects planned by nonprofits: $77,542 toward a roof replacement for Guyon Saunders Resource Center; $50,000 to help the Downtown Women's Center with a building purchase; and $24,442 for gymnasium heating and air-conditioning improvements at the North Branch YMCA.

The city will use more than $650,000 for emergency repair grants and housing rehabilitation efforts, and about $290,300 to manage the entire block grant program, according to city information. The federal government caps what the city can spend on program management to 20 percent of the total block grant allocation.

The plan approved Tuesday also sets the use in 2012-13 of $579,998 in federal HOME Investment Partnership Program dollars, a figure down 32 percent from 2011-12, Allen said.

That money is used to rehabilitate homes and rental properties for low- to moderate-income residents. It also is granted to nonprofits, such as Habitat for Humanity, that develop housing in low-income neighborhoods.

Federal restrictions limit the city from spending more than $58,000 - 10 percent - of the HOME program money on administration.

Also Tuesday, two residents of The Greenways attempted to derail a 7 percent increase in the assessments they pay to maintain enhanced public spaces within their neighborhood.

Homeowners Steve Carter and Ray Churchman took their complaints to the commission. But commissioners said the homeowners' beef is with the advisory board that makes decisions for The Greenways Public Improvement District.

The district, like others in the city of Amarillo, was initiated by the neighborhood's developer to supply amenities and services there that go beyond those the city normally provides.

Those who own property within a district pay an additional property tax assessment the city collects on behalf of the district, City Manager Jarrett Atkinson said.

State law requires the city to pass the revenues to the districts, Atkinson said.

The board determines how to allocate the money and what assessment rate to set, Commissioner Brian Eades said.

Commissioners vote to approve or reject the budget and assessment rate set by the board.

"This is not an increase by the city. This is a decision by the board," Eades said.

The Greenways PID funds maintenance of brick gates, public green spaces and other amenities within the southwest Amarillo neighborhood with the exception of the Greenways Park, which is a city park, Atkinson said.

For most property owners, the increase approved Tuesday by the commission will represent an estimated $35 increase in their annual tax bills, Planning Director Kelley Shaw said.

Carter and Churchman said public areas have not been kept well by the district.

Muff London, who represented Greenways developer Eddie Scott at the meeting, said Scott developed fewer lots last year, reducing the opportunity for new homeowners to move in and share in the cost of public-area maintenance.

Also, the neighborhood now "is starting to be old enough that we're having to fix some things," which adds to the district's costs, London said.

"Some of it has to do with our (the district's) water bill," she said. "When things go up, we have to adjust things accordingly."

Churchman and London expressed dissatisfaction with the city's maintenance of the park in the neighborhood. But London said the developer and city Interim Parks and Recreation Director Rod Tweet have been discussing solutions.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.